Dungeon Arc: Floor B1 — 1 of 15
The gate pulsed like a heartbeat.
At dawn, it stood tall and open on the western outskirts of Halcyra—ten feet wide, pure black, rimmed in violet runes that hissed and glowed. Around it, the city's guards had formed a perimeter. Adventurers passed through in waves, names logged by stone tablets keyed to magical registration.
Thane didn't speak as they approached.
Neither did Seren.
There was a tension now—not fear, but awareness. Something about a dungeon surfacing near a capital broke unspoken rules. Dungeons belonged in the wilderness. In ruins. In the borderlands.
Not here.
Not where people thought they were safe.
"Silver Band, reporting for entry," Seren told the recorder at the gate.
He tapped the tablet, looked them over, and nodded.
"Your team's logged. Once you go in, the system will tag you to this dungeon. No exiting without a gate crystal or clearance from the floor wardens—if they exist."
"Got it," Seren said.
He glanced at Thane.
"You part of this team?"
Thane raised his wrist, showing the B-rank tag.
The man's eyes flicked to Seren for confirmation.
"He's with us."
The man logged it.
"Good luck," he said.
"You'll need it."
Passing through the gate was like being shoved into cold water.
For a heartbeat, Thane felt nothing—no weight, no sense of body, no sound.
Then his feet hit solid ground.
And the world reassembled.
They stood in a vast cavern beneath black stone.
Smooth walls. Veins of faint silver light. The air was dry, but laced with a whisper of ozone.
Floating above a podium nearby was a shimmering sigil, slowly spinning—an ancient rune symbolizing the floor number.
B1
The first basement.
No monsters waited in sight.
No map appeared.
Just a narrow path leading into darkness.
Seren adjusted her sword belt.
"Formation."
She glanced at Thane. "You alright hanging back?"
He nodded once.
"Watch our flank," she added. "You see anything off, speak up."
He said nothing.
But followed.
The first encounter came after ten minutes of slow walking.
A pack of creatures emerged from the shadows—Crag Rats, huge and malformed, stone plating along their spines, red eyes glowing like coals.
"Contact," Sova said, nocking an arrow.
Seren surged forward with her blade drawn, Mira close behind with a staff glowing with wardlight.
They handled it.
Seren blocked with confidence, her blade arcing cleanly into two rats before pivoting into another. Mira cast blinding bursts of force to knock the creatures off balance. Sova picked off stragglers from a distance.
They were good.
Efficient.
Trained.
But Thane could see it—the gap.
Every swing Seren made cost her a half-step too much.
Every cast Mira threw pulled her mana pool down faster than she realized.
And Sova's arrows, though accurate, couldn't pierce the plated ones without a weak spot.
He watched from a distance.
Hands in his cloak.
No fire yet.
They cleared B1 without needing him.
But it took twenty-two minutes.
He could've done it in five.
They moved through B2, then B3.
The scenery began to change—tunnels narrowing, walls growing slick. Moisture condensed in the air. Faint sounds echoed ahead, but never clearly. Sometimes footsteps. Sometimes clicking. Sometimes breathing.
They fought more beasts.
Larger ones.
A Carrion Golem on B4 gave them trouble.
It absorbed too many hits.
Seren took a heavy blow to the shoulder that cracked her armor plate.
Mira looked shaken. Her spells fizzled once. Sova nearly lost an arrow to a ricochet that shattered stone near Thane's feet.
He stepped forward then—just one pace.
But didn't cast.
Not yet.
By B6, they were sweating.
Mana half-depleted. Packs lighter. No breaks.
They refused to ask for help.
And Thane didn't offer it.
Not because he didn't care.
Because they needed to see what this dungeon did to them first.
He would not break the rhythm they believed in.
That night, they set camp at a safe zone—marked by a floating sigil and a warm barrier stone. Thane took first watch. Sat alone.
Status screen open.
[STATUS]
📈 Level: 3
🧪 EXP: 61 / 140
🎒 Notable Skills:
• Magma Sword – Lv. 1 — EXP: 18 / 100
• Firebolt – Lv. 1 — EXP: 76 / 100
• Flame Arc – Lv. 1 — EXP: 43 / 100
• Lava Geyser – Lv. 1 — EXP: 20 / 100
📜 Meteor Blueprint Progress: 1.4%
Still slow.
Still burning upward.
He looked back at the girls—sleeping in a triangle, weapons near their hands.
They were strong.
But this dungeon hadn't begun yet.
And when it truly started...
He'd stop watching.
And start burning.